View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What was the nickname assigned to David Berkowitz when he was actively killing people?

2. What had been stolen from the family that was the next to suffer in the serial killing spree?

3. At what time did Terry's husband get home from work to find his wife had been murdered?

4. What is one of the things that detectives found in John's room when they went to search it?

5. Ressler suggests that the murderer is a white male _________.

Short Essay Questions

1. What happened with the larger criminal that Ressler attempted to interview in order to solve a crime?

2. What does Ressler find about the profile of serial killers and how they feel about their crimes?

3. What are some of the physical symptoms that agents involved in the interview experienced?

4. What did the killer try to convey in the messages that he left after the killings?

5. What is strange about the murder of the newspaper boy?

6. What are some of the characteristics of a disorganized killer, according to Ressler?

7. How did Charles Manson coerce others into killing for him?

8. What did the murderer do with the blood of the victim, according to the findings of officials?

9. What are some of the characteristics of an organized killer, according to Ressler?

10. What does the case of John Joubert IV reveal about his drive to kill?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In some serial killer cases, the killers say that they are told to follow through on the killing because voices told them to do so.

Part 1: Why are many serial killers driven by the voices of others?

Part 2: Do you believe that serial killers are actually hearing voices or just making excuses?

Part 3: How do you think serial killers could be assisted in not listening to the voices that tell them to kill?

Essay Topic 2

Ressler notices in the case of the newspaper boy killings that the murderer sliced off skin to hide bite marks.

Part 1: Do you think that slicing away bite marks is the sign of an intelligent killer?

Part 2: How do you think Ressler was able to determine the slices were meant to hide evidence?

Part 3: Why do you think a person would try to remove evidence from a body, though this also creates evidence?

Essay Topic 3

Many of the serial killers who are disorganized tend to have mental illnesses that cause them to take actions they might not otherwise take.

Part 1: Do you think mental illness is to blame for serial killing?

Part 2: How do you think people with mental diseases should be treated when they are convicted of crimes?

Part 3: Are people with mental illnesses to blame for what they have done?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 730 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample